I could not warm to this book despite really trying to. I kept hoping it was going to get better. The plot sounds so interesting. Someone is posting confessions of murders, including victims names in a dark hidden chat room. Enter our main character, Ex Police Emilia Haines. She’s been fascinated by this chat room, where people can anonymously confess to anything from stealing to cheating..and murder.

I found her character flat and very unrealistic. Despite no longer active in the police Emilia emerges herself in the hunt for the killer and the next victims. It’s totally unrealistic. Why? She embarks on tasks that interfere with the real police work, really crossing boundaries despite being warned off. She’d be charged in real life for obstruction I am positive.

It becomes like an amateur sleuth story rather than an intense thriller. The pace is S..L..O…..W. Tedious going. It got worse instead of better unfortunately. I didn’t feel research into true police procedure and regulations where citizens are pushing into investigations was done, or not well. The ending was just not good to say the least. This lacks lustre and bored me to tears. I plodded on and wished I had not bothered. Just nope. A generous 2 stars.

Former police officers who have quit the force after traumatic events but nevertheless find themselves compelled to engage in investigations of their own feature in quite a few contemporary thrillers, but Lia Middleton’s book offers an interesting variation. The former police officer in her novel is Emilia who now earns a living as a private detective operating mainly at night and who is suffering from the violent death of her sister. During one of her lonely stints during the night-time hours, Emilia comes across an online forum called ‘the confession room’ where thieves, love cheats and petty criminals divulge their deeds in anonymity – but there is also one poster who audaciously confesses to a murder before it has even taken place. What on earth is going on and what level of evil will Emilia be drawn into if she investigates? Switching between the points of view of Emilia and an as-yet-unknown kidnap victim, the atmosphere this thriller evokes is as treacherous and menacing as it gets. Hugely addictive, I can see this thriller garnering many readers. I would like to thank the publishers and NetGalley for the digital ARC that I was gifted in exchange for this unbiased review.

Dark and twisty to the last page. Emilia was a detective whose demons after her sister's murder meant she couldn't continue in the job but also cause her to obsess about an online forum called The Confession Room. The confessions are run-the mill: adultery, theft, dark desires. Until they aren't. Murder isn't run-of-mill and Emilia is hooked, her detective instincts engaged. But she's no longer on the inside, to the police she's not much more than a regular member of the public and a bit of a nuisance at that. Soon, despite being strongly warned off, she's deeply, personally involved. I feel like it was a rollercoaster of a ride except rollercoasters go up as well as down and emotionally this was overwhelmingly down!

Welcome to The Confession Room, an online forum where people confess to their darkest thoughts. For ex-police officer Emilia Haines, reading these secrets is the perfect distraction from her past.

And then one day someone confesses to murder. At first, it seems like a hoax, but then a body is found, and when another victim is named Emilia is desperate to discover who is behind these confessions.

The Confession Room is a contemporary thriller with a unique premise different to anything I have read before. The book is fast paced and Lia Middleton does an incredible job of maintaining suspense throughout the novel meaning I could not turn the pages fast enough.

The story heavily revolves around the idea of justice- what is right, what is wrong? What does justice look like to different people and who is and isn’t deserving. It also touches upon themes of guilt, grief and the dangers of the online world.

The reason I am giving this book 4 rather than 5 stars is because I found it difficult to engage with any characters and found the ending slightly incomplete, however that doesn’t take away from the fact that I enjoyed the storyline, pace of the book and can imagine it making a jaw-dropping film.

The confession room is an online forum where people can supposedly admit to a whole range of sins without needing to worry about the consequences.

Needless to say, any number of people join enthusiastically in - along with ex-policewoman Emilia Haines, who is now working as a PI - and any number of moral failings and indiscretions, both major and minor, are revealed.

Except...

Despite promising confessions without consequences, it unsurprisingly turns out not to be that simple after all. Someone uses the forum to confess to not one murder but two. Nor is that the end of it.

As further murderous confessions surface, and bodies begin to pile up, all those involved with the site start getting nervous. Has someone decided to hand out punishment to the guilty? And will they be next...?

This is a really original idea from Middleton, and the book delivers reasonably well wrt a suspenseful investigation combined with a voyeuristic interest in living vicariously through the misdemeanours of others. The story is not flawless, but it is undeniably interesting. This one gets 3.5 stars.

Thank you to the author, publishers Penguin and NetGalley UK for access to this as an advance reader’s ebook. This is an honest and voluntary review.

Former police detective Emilia Haines has been lost since her sister was murdered by a stalker. Leaving the career she’d loved she now uses her skills to uncover cheating spouses as a private eye. Then she discovers a murder confession on an internet discussion board and becomes determined to find out the truth, whatever the cost to herself.

Leave your disbelief behind to enter the world of a complex murderer who films people forced to admit to their darkest deeds.

As with previous stories by this author the compelling part of this story is thinking about what you would do in the same situation. Would you do whatever it takes to survive?

There’s a good core concept here and I enjoyed the main character of Emilia. Two close friends of hers feel underused however, like half developed characters who were intended to help drive the narrative, but ultimately just get a few short sequences with no real influence on the outcome.

Plotting wise, for such a complex murder ‘game’ there’s a lot the reader is expected to just overlook until it becomes important to the narrative. By the time Emilia ‘remembered’ some key clues from earlier in the story I’d almost given up on the author ever acknowledging that they’d told the reader these details.

A good concept, but falls short on the delivery.

This is the sort of book that can start a reading slump, for all the very best reasons. I know I will struggle to find a book that comes near matching The Confession Room for a long time.

As the engrossing book begins, we have two story strands. Emilia who is ex police, trying to come to terms with the violent death of her sister, and how to navigate life after such trauma; and someone who wakes to find themselves kidnapped, chained in a locked room. The Confession Room.
Everyone thinks The Confession Room is harmless voyeurism, an anonymous way to unburden yourself from guilt. The reality is far from that, for a select few.

The book is really well written. The fast paced story flowing extremely quickly. As I finished each chapter, there was no question that I would stop reading, I was desperate to know what would happen next.
When I reached a certain point in the book, a huge plot development occured, and my stress level went through the roof. If I wasn’t fully invested before, I certainly was then.

If you love a taut, fraught thriller, that will tie your stomach in knots, you really need to get your pre-order in now. The book is fast paced. It grabs hold of you, and doesn’t let go, until the final page has turned. The characterisation is excellent, I felt I knew Emi incredibly well.
This tense book brings wave after wave of anxiety. When you think that Emi, and you, the reader, by extension, have endured enough stress, the author brings more raining down on us both.

I have read a lot of books this year, a good number have been great reads. But, this book, The Confession Room, I predict will be right up there at the top at the end of the year.
This is the first book that I have read by this author, but before writing this review, I have bought her back catalogue. If Lia Middleton’s other books are half as good and chilling as this one, I’m in for an absolute treat, and more tense reading, quite probably.
Definitely 5⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ from me.

This was a very twisty novel where you read the whole book always one step behind the author never quite knowing what comes next.

Really enjoyable novel with a brilliant ending

The Confession Room is a dark, gripping psychological thriller and my first novel from Lia Middleton who I've been meaning to read for quite some time. This one had me enthralled and I'll be seeking out her back list now. Recommended.

When I first came across the title of this book I was already anticipating it to be a gripping psychological thriller. I was not disappointed in the way that the author was able to build up tension throughout the novel and at times I found it very difficult to put the book down. The storyline is very dark in places and and the characters are developed well enough that I cared about the outcome.

In retrospect and having read the book I was able to fully enjoy the way that the different plot threads were keeping me engaged and guessing right up to the very end. In an age where mental health has become a very big issue, I was interested to see that the author had incorporated this aspect into her novel with sensitivity and nuance, highlighting the ways in which trauma can impact individuals and communities.

Overall, I found the book to be well-written and thought-provoking which kept my attention to the very last pages.

Rating: 4.0/5

This is my second experience of Lia Middleton's work, having previously read "You Word or Mine". I enjoyed that novel, but I didn't think it did enough to be up with the best in class. However, "The Confession Room" was much more to my liking and provided for a thoroughly entertaining read from start to finish.

For those who are familiar with the "Saw" movie series, there is a clear influence from that franchise (especially the first film) on the central idea behind the plot. There is nothing wrong in that, as the author takes that basic similar premise in a direction very much of her own creation and poses some captivating moral dilemmas along the way. The are ample amounts of tension and suspense, with plenty of twists and turns as the narrative progresses. Some of the developments you may work out in advance, but for the most part Lia Middleton employs sufficient levels of disguise to keep the reader guessing - and perfectly legitimate disguise it is too, without the need to resort to ludicrously contrived plot mechanisms purely for the sake of it.

A very enjoyable thriller that is easy to recommend and Lia Middleton has ensured that I will be back for her next offering too.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for supplying an ARC in return for an honest review.

Wow! There are page turners and then there's the new Lia Middleton novel! The pace in The Confession Room is incredible - once I started, I couldn't put it down. The concept for this novel was so original. Emilia, an ex-police officer gets caught up in an online forum - The Confession Room - when a murderer starts posting the names of upcoming victims.

The plot and the amazing twists in this novel would be more than enough, but what I really loved was Emilia's character and how the author shows the huge impact tragedy has had on her own life, a tragedy that propels her to get deeper and deeper into The Confession Room, even when she knows she should walk away. There are some really touching scenes throughout the novel, especially with her parents and ex-boyfriend, that made me really root for Emilia and to understand her need for justice.

The Confession Room is original, thought-provoking, so clever and is Lia Middleton's best novel yet. Can't wait to see what's next.

Thank you to the publisher, Lia Middleton and Netgalley for this early copy in exchange for an honest review. This novel is about a page called 'The Confession Room' where the names of victims begin to get posted on this online forum. Our main character, Emilia, is an ex-Detective who wants to do everything she can to try and help.

I devoured this book. The action started from the very first chapter and it was full of brilliant plot twists. The ending was so unexpected and I definitely recommend this book. I feel like it is a perfect holiday read - I love reading a good crime/thriller novel while I'm away. This is so fast paced and I was on the edge of my seat, I just sped through it, reading non stop all weekend, because I was desperate to find out what happened. Definitely going to explore some more of Lia Middleton's books after this fabulous read.

The story started on a great note with enough mystery to keep me hooked but then I did find the story dragging. I did not enjoy the story as much as I thought I would as I just couldn’t connect with any of the characters.

#TheConfessionRoom #NetGalley
Good one.
Some people confess to affairs, others to stealing. Some admit deep, dark wishes.
But one day, a confession is posted that nobody expects: murder. And not just one named victim, but two.
As more victims are named, and more bodies found, people begin to fear who could be named next. Because it seems that if you have a secret, they'll find you.
Go and read it. This is a good book.
Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Michael Joseph UK for giving me an advance copy.

I really liked the idea of this book. There is an Internet chat room where people confess things. Some things are probably the sort of things that people would not confess to in public but on the Internet that doesn't matter... Emilia is an ex police officer. It seems likely initially that her leaving the police relates to the fact that her sister was murdered and the killer has not been found. She seems to blame herself for her death. She is also addicted to the Confession Room.

The start of this seemed creative and intriguing to me. When someone confesses to a murder in the chat room Emilia is drawn to being involved and contacts a serving police man who she worked with (and was involved with). She tries to get information from him and then increasingly investigates herself.

In practice the deeper I went into this the more it frustrated me. In the end I found Emilia a less than complete character and not that credible. Other characters were very minor. The pace in this is excellent and I'm sure many will get caught up in it. The combination of "confession" and "justice" (or possibly revenge) should work but this felt rather superficial to me. I have read books that had some similarities that I definitely preferred but I'm guessing this one will do well enough with other readers.

The confession room an online forum where people confess their sins with no backlash, or is there?
The story mainly revolves around Emila an ex police officer now a private investigator, its extremely fast paced with lots of twists you will not see coming!
This book had a brilliant premise and did not fail to entertain me!
Thank you to the publisher and author for my advance copy for an honest review.

Absolutely loved this book, didn’t want to put it down.

It doesn’t reinvent the wheel but for me, when it comes to crime thrillers, I don’t want you to. Just give me a fast pace and and interesting, even outlandish plot and I’m in.

The way this story unfolds with the main protagonist on the outside because of previous trauma makes you really care and gives a different perspective than you would get from the story being told from the lead detective point of view.

Really fast paced, thrilling read. I was absorbed by the story from chapter one, and was really impressed by the ending. Enjoyable read!

A thriller that strays to the darker side. I liked this one, it has a brilliant premise and it's well written. It fully engaged my attention and the story flowed smoothly.